In the field of over-the-road trucking, it is highly desirable to be able to minimize the amount of service required on a vehicle in order that the vehicle be available for use on the road for a maximum percentage of time. The changing of oil and corresponding filter accounts for a substantial amount of the maintenance which will be performed on an over-the-road truck during its lifetime. Further, the service life of the diesel engine is directly related to the cleanliness of the oil run in the engine.
Prior known oil addition units have generally utilized a gravity principle similar to the principle by which water coolers operate. Such systems are typically shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,777,852, 4,091,894, 4,107,999 and 4,108,201. These units can be unreliable in that if the line cracks, air may find its way into the oil reservoir thereby dumping the entire contents of the reservoir into the engine.
Thus, it is an object of this invention to provide a device which will substantially reduce the amount of maintenance time required by eliminating the need for discrete oil changes and which will provide for the oil to remain substantially clean and effective as well as maintaining the oil at the optimum level.